LORETTO, Pa. – Four Saint Francis men's basketball players were in double figures, but a double-digit second-half lead slipped away in a 94-92 overtime defeat at the hands of Fairleigh Dickinson Tuesday night.
 
Senior Ramiir Dixon-Conover led the Red Flash with 20 points, junior Myles Thompson added a season-best 19 and redshirt sophomore Bryce Laskey chipped in with a career-high 16. Senior Mark Flagg contributed 12 points and eight rebounds for the Red Flash, which out-rebounded the Knights 41-38 and got to the offensive glass 17 times.
 
Fairleigh Dickinson 94, Saint Francis 92 (OT)
Records: Saint Francis (3-9, 2-6), Fairleigh Dickinson (3-8, 2-3)
Location: DeGol Arena (Loretto, Pa.)
 

🎥 Highlights and postgame comments from @SFUcoachkrim after a hard-fought Tuesday night @NECsports battle in overtime.

🔴⚡️ BELIEVE | #NECMBB pic.twitter.com/BhfHK8faou
— Saint Francis Men's Basketball (@RedFlashMBB) January 27, 2021
 

COACH KRIMMEL'S COMMENTS
"It was certainly a hard-fought game between two Northeast Conference teams. I give Greg and his team a lot of credit; they made the final play and a few more plays down the stretch than we did. I was pleased with the way our guys came out to play the game and to play the [second] half, but we've got to put 40 minutes together."
 
KEY MOMENTS

• Saint Francis responded to the first Fairleigh Dickinson basket of the second half with a 15-0 run to go in front 53-36 with 16 minutes remaining. It would be the largest lead of the night for either team.
• Fairleigh Dickinson answered with a 12-2 run to set up a back-and-forth final 15 minutes.
• A jumpshot from freshman Maxwell Land tied the game at 80 with 68 seconds remaining and forced the extra session.

HOW IT HAPPENED 

• A 9-1 Saint Francis run helped the hosts open a 14-4 lead on a basket from junior Marlon Hargis with 13:41 to play in the opening half.
• The Knights answered with the next seven to get back within three before a run capped off by a Land three put the Red Flash in front 28-19 with 5:19 before halftime.
• FDU cut the margin to three, and after a pair of free throws from redshirt junior Tyler Stewart, completed a three-point play to make it 36-34 Saint Francis with 1:46 to go in the half.
• A Laskey jumper accounted for the only points by either team in the final 1:46 as Saint Francis took a 38-34 lead into the locker room.
• The Knights scored the first two points out of the half before the Red Flash rattled off the next 15, moving ahead 53-36 on a Flagg free throw with 16:28 remaining. Flagg (six) and Dixon-Conover (four) combined for 10 of the 15 during the stretch.
• The Knights quickly answered with a 12-2 run over the next 1:04 to get back within 55-48.
• FDU tied the game at 63 with 10:19 to play in the contest before Flagg made a pair of free throws to move SFU back in front.
• The Red Flash led by four, but the Knights re-tied the game at 69 with seven minutes remaining and again at 71 with 5:15 to play and 73 at 4:35.
• The Knights took a 77-76 lead on a free throw with 2:23 remaining before a Dixon-Conover floater put the Red Flash in front by one. FDU responded with a three and called timeout leading 80-78 with 1:38 remaining.
• A Land jumper tied the game at 80 with 1:08 to play in regulation – a score that would hold up for the final 68 seconds before overtime.
• FDU moved ahead 89-84 in the extra session before a Laskey three cut the margin to two with Coach Krimmel taking a timeout at 2:11.
• A Dixon-Conover three got the Red Flash to within 93-92, and after one FDU free throw, a full-court pass from Flagg to Dixon-Conover connected, but the shot was off the mark.

STATS

• Dixon-Conover and Thompson were both 7-of-17 from the field. Thompson knocked down a pair of threes, while Dixon-Conover added five free throws to his made three.
• Thompson added seven rebounds, including five on the offensive glass.
• Dixon-Conover compiled five rebounds, four assists, five steals, and a block.
• Flagg recorded the 99^th block of his career, while Laskey tallied his second.
• Laskey recorded career-highs in points (16), minutes (37), made field goals (7) and shot attempts (14). He matched his career-highs in blocks (1) and assists (3).
• Redshirt freshman Josh Cohen added six rebounds in 13 minutes off the bench.
• Both teams were 33-of-68 (48.5%) from the field. FDU was 11-of-21 (52.4%) from three, while SFU went 6-for-20 (30%).
• The Red Flash attempted a season-high 29 free throws, making 20 (69%).
• SFU recorded 18 assists on 33 made field goals.

GAME NOTES

• Saint Francis drops to 47-49 all-time against Fairleigh Dickinson.
• The 94 points were a season-high.
• With his performance, Dixon-Conover now ranks 33rd nationally in steal rate (4.3%) and 51st in assist rate (33.0%).
• The overtime session was Saint Francis' first since Nov. 8, 2019 at Richmond. Prior to that, the Red Flash played four overtime games in the 2017-18 season, going 3-1 with wins over Niagara, Bryant, and Central Connecticut.
• Tuesday's game was originally scheduled for Tuesday, Dec. 15, and was made up as part of the first Northeast Conference make-up window.

UP NEXT 
The Red Flash and Knights meet again Wednesday at 4 p.m. on NEC Front Row.
 
Follow Saint Francis Men's Basketball on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to get up-to-date information and a behind-the-scenes look at the Red Flash.
 
To learn more about Saint Francis University, visit francis.edu.